The prior art contains many patents directed to nail polish removal receptacles which support or suspend an insert structure to aid in the removal of hardened nail polish from fingernails after the finger has been immersed into nail polish remover contained within the receptacle. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,474,195; 4,440,181 and 4,282,891 disclose nail polish remover devices in which a receptacle is provided with a sponge or sponge-like absorbent member insert. The sponge member insert is provided with an aperture forming a finger hole into which the finger is placed. The absorbent sponge absorbs nail polish remover and upon insertion of finger into the sponge aperture, the polished fingernail comes into contact with the sponge and nail polish remover solution to remove the polish from the nail. The solution and polish fragments are wiped from the inserted fingernail by the sponge as the fingernail is removed from the jar.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,397,324 discloses a nail polish receptacle which is provided with a brush member. The brush member is disposed in the receptacle by wire legs which support the brush element in the approximate determinus of a circular finger opening. U.S. Pat. No. 4,321,931 discloses a nail polish remover receptacle containing a plurality of downwardly spaced apart free floating legs with an inwardly curved end portion. The legs have bristles or brush like elements secured thereto which extend inward. When a person inserts a finger into the device, the finger will contact the bristles and push the legs outward in such a manner that the nail polish remover liquid on the bristles will remove the nail polish from the fingernails. After a number of uses, the legs tend to spread apart so that a person can get a fingernail caught on the end of the leg, breaking the nail or a portion of the nail during the brushing motion. U.S. Pat. No. 3,316,922 discloses a nail polish remover device in which a circular brush with a circular open center is mounted on a group of abutments extending inwardly from an insert surface. The brush member is positioned on the abutments and the brush stem is moved against the abutments to snap into an inclined position.
The above cited patents have been specifically directed towards suspending the brush element within a receptacle. Thus the brush element when suspended within the receptacle does not provide the most efficient way of removing the nail polish from the fingernail, as well as being comprised of multiple pieces of separate construction and assembly which add to the cost of the unit and make the unit more difficult to assemble. Furthermore, there are reservations about the use of a sponge or sponge-like product in beauty salons because of the occurrence of bacterial collection and growth in the sponge.